Inch Measurement Oil Seals

Oil seals are vital to the daily operation of most factories and a wide range of industrial and commercial equipment. They are available in imperial and metric dimensions for both single- and double-lip design.

Various lip materials are also available to best suit design requirements such as temperature and chemical resistance. Material options range from nitrile for low-temperature applications to Viton® for high-temperature and low-compression operations.

Common lip materials available for use in our metric oil seals include:

Nitrile — A low-cost option, nitrile has superior low-temperature capability and abrasion resistance, as well as low swell in hydrocarbon fluids. It has poor heat resistance, however, and is not resistant to ozone or lubricants containing sulphur or EP additives or hydrocarbons/oxygenate blends.

Temperature range: -40° F to 225° F / -40° C to 107° C)

Polyacrylate — Unlike nitrile, this higher-cost material has high resistance to EP lubricants and higher heat capabilities. It also features low swell in hydrocarbon fluids. Polyacrylate has limited to low temperature capability and poor dry running capability. It’s also subject to attack in aqueous media.

Temperature range: -20° F to 300° F / -29° C to 49° C)

Silicone — Good dry-heat resistance, excellent low-temperature capability, and good ozone resistance make silicone an ideal, relatively affordable lip material for many applications. It can, however, be easily damaged during installation, and has poor resistance to some EP additives and oxidized oil. Silicone also has a high swell and poor dry running performance.

Temperature range: -80° F to 350° F / -62° C to 176° C)

Fluoro-elastomer — Although relatively expensive, long-lasting fluoro-elastomer has excellent high-temperature capabilities and is compatible with many types of fluids. It does have poor resistance to basic fluids, and is prone to attack by high-performance gear lubes.

Temperature range: -30° F to 400° F / -35° C to 204° C)

Depending on your application, you may need to employ premium lip materials, such as:

Ethylene-acrylic (Varmac®) — This intermediate-cost material has higher heat capabilities than both nitrile and polyacrylate, and also has a better low-temperature performance than polyacrylate. It has good abrasion and dry running capabilities. However, it has high swell in hydrocarbon fluids and limited capability in high-frequency applications or following eccentric shafts.

Temperature range: -30° F to 325° F / -34° C to 163° C)

Tetrafluoro-ethylene propylene (Aflas®) — More expensive than fluoro-elastomers, this material has better chemical resistance to all hydrocarbon fluids, acids, bases, and oxidizing agents. It can perform in the complete range of hydraulic fluids and has continuous heat resistance over 400° F. As for its weaknesses, tetrafluoro-ethylene propylene has poor chemical resistance to hydrocarbon-oxygenate blends and poor low-temperature capabilities.